Napster

Starting today, the Android versions of the apps Rhapsody and Napster will be available for Chromecasting. This means that the apps themselves are able to attach to the Google-made dongle device for your television and "Cast" their content. Once you’ve sent the signal, your television will show the music track of your choice, and you’ll be free to continue doing what you wish on your smartphone or tablet.

LG has given its smart TV line-up a squirt of extra streaming content, adding Napster, Eurosport, Deezer, and other premium services to its 2012 models. The new entertainment options - some of which will require a subscription to access, though LG is laying on some free trials - will be landing over the coming weeks, while new UK buyers will also get a free chunk of movie download credit.

I have tried them all. I have been using Pandora since the early days, and I pay for the premium Pandora service. I tried, for at least a month each and often more, all of the old guard of the streaming music services. Rhapsody. Napster. Slacker Radio. I owned a Zune HD, and subscribed to Zune, and when I bought my first Windows phone, I subscribed again to give it a second try. When Spotify got hot, I tried it for a while, sharing playlists and music. I have tried Rdio and Last.fm. I’ve spent time on Turntable. For a couple days, I even used Ping. But there is one online music service that is my favorite by far. I’ve been using it for almost a year, and it’s actually gotten better since I started. I listen at work on my desktop, on my smartphone while I’m exercising, and in my car on my stereo.

Rhapsody has acquired Napster in Europe, grabbing an instant user-base boost in the UK and Germany, and continuing to ramp up the pressure on streaming darling Spotify. Current Napster subscribers in Europe will be shifted over to Rhapsody's system in March 2012, gaining a new web-based client and mobile apps, but keeping their existing library of tracks and albums.

There's a site out there folks by the name of Rhapsody, one that's been around for 10 years now, averaging now more than 10 million songs running through its halls per day, and this week they've claimed their spot as the number one premium music service in the USA. Their other big claim to fame this week is that they've now got over one million paying subscribers, no small feat in itself. All this of course makes us not forget their recent acquisition of the infamous Napster back in November of this year.

Rhapsody announced today that it will be buying Napster from Best Buy to boost its subscriber base and expand its IP portfolio. The move appears to be a direct reaction to the intensifying competition from music service rivals like Spotify, which has been hogging much of the spotlight lately. The terms of the deal have not been revealed, but it is expected to close around November 30 with Best Buy receiving a minority stake in Rhapsody.

Napster's mobile streaming access has finally crossed the Atlantic and turned up on Android and iOS devices in the UK, promising unlimited on-demand playback of the company's 15m+ catalog for £10 ($16) per month. The new app also offers automatic offline playback of the last 100 tracks played, in addition to saved playlists, albums and artists.

LG's CES 2010 LCD HDTV line-up may not be quite as technologically impressive as Toshiba's CELL-packing ZX900, but it certainly dwarfs it in terms of sheer number of models. The company have announced a full 39 different HDTVs, ranging from the entry-level LD350 which kicks off at a modest 19-inches, through to the Infinia LE9500 flagship with up to 55-inch panels, skinny 8.5mm bezels, Full HD 1080p, Skype videocalls (assuming you plug in a webcam), 3D-ready support and streaming media from Netflix, VUDU, YouTube, Napster and Yahoo! Widgets.

Dell and Napster announced today that certain Dell consumer laptops and desktops would be offered with a year of free Napster service included. The machines are set to start shipping later this month in the UK, US, and Germany.

When Best Buy gobbled up failing music company Napster, many wondered what the retail giant saw in the company. Best Buy used the Napster name to start its own online music store to compete with Walmart and iTunes.